AN Okehampton café owner has described the journey back to profitability for business owners in the town ‘as a long runway’ as he reopened for business.

Andrew Grant, proprietor of Coffee at Grants in the Red Lion Yard, said business had been busy since he and his staff reopened on Saturday, July 4.

‘We opened with great trepidation that Saturday and Sunday but takings were better than we expected, so we are optimistic. It is a long runway, and people need confidence to get back into the swing of it but it is encouraging.

He added: ‘My one concern is whether we can build up enough of a buffer during the summer to get us through the winter but we have some very loyal customers and we have seen so many come back. We haven’t seen so many holidaymakers; I feel they have all gone down the M5 straight to Falmouth, but otherwise it is very encouraging.’

Down the road in East Street, Gill Abbots of antiques shop Yesterdays reported that business was good in her first week back.

‘I’m very pleased, in fact I’m gobsmacked, because I feared there would be nobody coming in, because it is not an essential shop,’ she said.

‘I’m only opening three days a week at the moment but it has been really good. I even had some real tourists in the other day, who are staying in a self-catering place, and somebody has been in who is house hunting. Otherwise, most of the people have been locals.’

Tazz Chowdhury, who runs Beanfeast health food shop in the Arcade in Okehampton with partner Emma Cridland, has been open throughout the crisis. He said it was good to have some company now with other shops reopening but that it would take a while for confidence among shoppers to be restored.

‘A lot of the people who come to the arcade are the more elderly people. Normally they would come out for the morning and have tea or coffee or breakfast but they are still scared at the moment. I think in week or two things will hopefully pick up. I think people are looking at how it goes in July and then in August they will be back.

‘Still it is not bad. It is much better than not opening at all — at least in being open you have some customers.’